ARR Interview with New Voice author Dee Davis

Your biography tells us that you have a long history with the idea of telling stories. Can you remember any of the ones you created as a child?

What a fun question. I do remember two of my favorites. Or at least vaguely, I remember. The first was a short story about the end of the world. I wrote it in fifth grade. It was about how humans had destroyed the planet through pollution. And the other I remember was about a young girl who longed for her old life (she’d moved) but when her wish was granted, it wasn’t exactly as she’d envisioned it would be. I wrote it in the ninth grade just after moving from Texas to Oklahoma. So sort of autobiographical, I suppose. Now that you’ve got me thinking on it, I may have to dig into the attic and see if I still have copies…hmmmm…..

Was there a specific moment when you said “That’s it, I’m going to write a book”? Or a specific trigger?

I looked in the mirror one morning and realized it wasn’t a spring chicken peering back. I was facing the big 40 and I realized that if I didn’t do some of the things I’d been saying I was going to do some day, that some day might just pass me by. Writing a book was at the top of the list. So I opened a blank computer page and here I am…

Your biography mentions your extensive career in public relations and its associated fields. Do you feel these experiences have contributed to your skills as a writer? How?

I can’t say that my career specifically influenced my writing. But I do believe that a writer brings everything in their experience, conscious and unconscious to his or writing. So everything that I’ve experienced and observed in my life is brought to bare as I create characters and situations for stories.

Is the genesis of a novel based on a character, an incident, an idea - how does it all start for you?

Every book is different. Sometimes I see the people in my mind. Sometimes it’s the situation. In Everything In Its Time is was the situation. Iain and Katherine as individuals came after the original idea of two lovers separated by time. In Just Breathe Chloe was the center of the book from the beginning. I have a fear of falling off a train. The steps are so high and you’re usually juggling something. From there I saw Chloe on the dead man. That was the impetus for Just Breathe. With the Promise it was all about place. I grew up spending summers in Creede, Colorado. I feel in love with the mountains, the mines, and the history of the place. There is magic there. And I wanted to share that magic with others. So The Promise was born.

Are you a disciplined writer (time set aside each day for writing) or is it a more haphazard process for you?

I write full time. And although I often feel like I’m not disciplined enough, my critique partners would be doubled over with laughter telling you I am overly disciplined. I write or work at writing on average eight to ten hours a day depending on where I am in the story. Less at the computer in the beginning (it’s more in my head) and sometimes round the clock when I’m trying to pull it all together in the end.

Do you have a particular place for your writing?

I have an office. My grandmother gave me a beautiful desk. And my husband has me wired for sound with computer, printer, scanner….the works! I really don’t have an excuse not to write.

Are there any authors you would consider as having influenced your writing?

Tough question. I think as a reader probably everything I’ve read has affected my writing. But I think Mary Stewart influenced me with her descriptive abilities, as did Alistair McClain, and people like JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis with their story telling, world creating abilities. And authors like Madeline L’Engle and Harper Lee for their themes. And writers like Mary Higgens Clark, Robin Cook, and Michael Crichton for their pacing and sheer fingernail biting abilities.

Do you remember how you felt when you received your first fan letter? And what it said?

I still cry sometimes at the wonderful things people have said. The simple idea that someone read my words and liked them is amazing to me. What an honor and a thrill and…well there just aren’t words. On a really bad day, I sometimes go back and read them, just to remind myself that occasionally I’ve managed to touch someone’s heart.

It is clear that love is an enormous motivator in your books. Not just for good, either -(Sorcha in “Everything in its Time” comes immediately to mind, as do Alex and Max Madison, and of course Owen Prescott in “The Promise”). Does this reflect a personal belief?

I think there a very fine line between love and hate, good and evil. And I belive that it is possible for something that starts out good to take a turn towards something less noble. A lot of that has to do, I think, with strength of character. Max, for instance didn’t have the courage to rise above the things that had been a part of his past. Sorcha, on the other hand, was more a victim of circumstance and bad judgement. I don’t believe she was really evil. With Owen it was about obsession. And with Alex -- well he was probably truly a sociopath. Which means he had no true emotions at all. I do believe it’s possible to redeem oneself. It’s all about choices really. We are who we are because of the choices we make in life. Good or bad. It’s how we deal with the things that happen to us that make us heros or villians. I guess I believe that there’s a little of each in all of us. And only time and situation will allow us to choose which we want to be. But yes, fundementally I guess I believe that love is at the center of everything.

You are obviously very comfortable writing about different times and different locations. How do you go about researching, for example, Scottish castles, or Irish villages? (And how do you know to call an Aga a “cooker” not a “stove’?☺)

Researching a time and place is half the fun of writing the book, I think. I have traveled a great deal and so have been lucky enough to have visited the places I write about. I actually lived in Vienna for a time. As far as choosing the words, it’s about doing your homework, and in my case having English friends and hearing them talk about the Aga. I actually went to an Aga distributer when we were last in England. I’d read about them all my life, and seen them in action, but never actually been to the Aga store….

I have to ask a temporal question, when your heroine goes back in time and settles permanently, doesn’t she change the future in which she existed in the first place? Sort of like violating the laws of the space-time continuum?

Well, actually as far as time is concerned there are no certainties really. And I am, after all writing fiction. But in both the time travels I’ve written, time is in fact changed. In Everything In Its Time it’s actually changed several times. The idea behind it is that time undamaged would proceed in a straight line. Past then present then future. But what if somehow something didn’t happen as it was intended, and somehow the line became twisted so that there was a loop, and the incorrect sequence kept happening over and over and over again. The idea then would be that eventually by making different choices the sequence would be corrected, and the loop would “straighten” out and time would be different but in the way that it was intended to be. Clear as mud, right? All I can tell you is that I have studied the physics behind it all, and I think if any of it were actually possible, this kind of thing “could” happen.

Do you worry when your fans ask this kind of relativistic question?

Not at all, I just wish I could explain myself better.

If you had the chance to time-travel yourself, what destination would you choose and why?

Interesting question. I don’t know that I’d want to time-travel, honestly. I think the responsibility would be tremendous. And currently I have everything I want right here in the now. (Also I like modern conveniences!) But I suppose if I were going to choose something it would be somewhere in Great Britain. Probably when we were less bound by scientific convention. Scotland or Wales or Ireland maybe. Iain Macintosh’s Duncraig wouldn’t be to shabby!

Your work reflects a variety of different categories (time-travel, suspense) - is there one you prefer, or do you enjoy trying something new with each book?

I think if you look at the body of my work you’ll find that all of them are suspenseful. To varying degrees certainly, but the element is always present. I love the combination of romance and suspense. So to some extent I can’t imgine writing a book without those two elements. The time travels came about because I love the idea, and because that’s simply what they had to be. It’s fascinating to develop a story on so many levels.

Are there other romance genres you’d like to have a crack at?

No. I love what I’m doing now. And as long as someone gives me the opportunity to to do it. And as long as someone is reading the books, I’m here for the long run.

Of your current novels, do you have a favorite character? Is there a heroine you’d like to be for a couple of days?

Interesting question. My favorite characters are always the ones I’m working on at the moment. Except once in a while when they are being particularly cantakerous. Believe it or not I often love/hate the antagonist as much as the hero and heroine. Particularly with Sorcha and Sabra. And I loved Irma in Just Breathe, and she was only a secondary character. I will always have a special place in my heart for Katherine and Iain because they were my first. And currently I’m liking John and Kathleen. But then there’s Matthew and Chloe…. Hmmmm… Heroine for a day? Definitely Kacy. Not because I particularly want to be her, but hey, she has that cottage in Ireland. And I loved her dog Mac!

How does your family respond to your success as a writer and do they contribute in any way to the creative process?

My family has been amazingly supportive. I couldn’t have done any of this without them. My husband carries bookmarks around in his wallet and often accosts strangers to tell them about my books. My daughter has all the teachers at her elementary school reading them. But mostly they help out and do things that allow me the time and energy it takes to go into another world for a time to live other people lives. And for that I will be eternally grateful!

Do you have any favorite authors you enjoy reading just for fun?

Kay Hooper. Linda Howard. I still love Mary Stewart and reread her books often. I like Marry Higgens Clark. Have never missed a Michael Crichton book. And I am just getting into James Patterson.

Any other hobbies?

Everything has sort of gone to the side of late. (even the laundry). But I do love to travel. And I love to putter in the garden. And occasionally, not on demand, create something in the kitchen. But honestly, most of my creative energies are drained in the writing process. Which I actually find wonderfully satisfying.

To borrow a couple of questions from the Bernard Pivot questionnaire, what profession, other than your own, would you most like to try?

I’d love to have a starring role in a Broadway musical, sing in a rock band, or work at the White House.

What profession would you definitely not care to attempt?

Brain surgeon. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for messing around in someone else’s head.

What is up and coming for Dee Davis in the future?

I have a new romantic suspense novel coming out in March. Dark of the Night is set in Atlanta around a presidential campaign. And I’m working on a new romantic suspense (slated for Dec) Midnight Rain. It’s set in Austin, which is fun, since I live there. There’s more information about each and excerpts at www.deedavis.com

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer our questions. It’s been our pleasure to introduce you and your work on our site, and we hope that many more readers will be encouraged to make your books part of their reading experience.

Interview With New Voice Author Dee Davis

Interview With
New Voice Author
Dee Davis